sift
verb
\ Ėsift
\
\
sifted;
sifting;
sifts
Definition of sift
1a
: to put through a sieve
sift flour
b
: to separate or separate out by or as if by putting through a sieve
2
: to go through especially to sort out what is useful or valuable
sifted the evidence
—often used with through sift through a pile of old letters
3
: to scatter by or as if by sifting
sift sugar on a cake
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Examples of sift in a Sentence
Sift the flour into a mixing bowl.
Sift the lumps from the sugar.
The police sifted the evidence in hopes of finding a clue.
The police sifted for clues.
The lawyer sifted through the hundreds of pages of testimony.
Firefighters sifted through the debris.
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Recent Examples on the Web
To make all-purpose and other white flours, the more volatile parts of the grain are sifted out. — Jesse Sparks, Bon AppĆ©tit, "9 Pantry Staples You Probably Need to Replace," 3 Sep. 2019 Next, Erickson had to sift for crystals suitable for dating. — Eric Hand, Science | AAAS, "Shock and thaw? Earthās oldest asteroid impact may have helped lift the planet out of a deep freeze," 27 Aug. 2019 Fish said police have been sifting through Nelsonās farm as well as other properties trying to locate the brothers. — Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, "Two brothers drove to a manās farm for a business deal. No oneās heard from them since," 30 July 2019 Today, those same jobs require understanding how to work with a robot to move around packages efficiently or use artificial intelligence to sift through resumes. — Scott F. Latham, The Conversation, "What Amazonās decision to retrain a third of its employees means for the future of work," 19 July 2019 Set in 1959, the story focuses on Max Bialystock (Richardson Jones), a Broadway producer with an anti-Midas touch, and Leo Bloom (Christopher Jewell Valentin), a timid accountant hired to sift through the books. — Daryl H. Miller, latimes.com, "Review: Small theaters think big with āRagtimeā at the Chance and āThe Producersā at Celebration," 11 July 2019 There was the iconic, electric return man and the versatile, consistent running back, impeccably dressed in suits, sifting through their emotions for words of perspective on careers that highlighted a bygone era of Bears football. — Rich Campbell, chicagotribune.com, "Bears honor Devin Hester and Matt Forte in retirement ceremony," 24 Apr. 2018 Each day, at NFL Films headquarters in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, Rodgers and his team sift through the footage in search of compelling material. — Chuck Barney, The Mercury News, "A Raiders āHard Knocksā primer: All you need to know," 25 July 2019 Each day, at NFL Films headquarters in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, Rodgers and his team sift through the footage in search of compelling material. — Chuck Barney, The Denver Post, "A Raiders āHard Knocksā primer: All you need to know," 25 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sift.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for sift
sift
verb
English Language Learners Definition of sift
: to put (flour, sugar, etc.) through a sifter or sieve
: to separate or remove (something) by using a sifter or sieve
: to go through (something) very carefully in order to find something useful or valuable
See the full definition for sift in the English Language Learners Dictionary
sift
verb
\ Ėsift
\
\
sifted;
sifting
Kids Definition of sift
1
: to pass or cause to pass through a sieve
sift flour
2
: to separate or separate out by or as if by passing through a sieve
I sifted the lumps.
3
: to test or examine carefully
Police will sift through the evidence.
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